Lecture: Where Plates Go
Speaker:
Entry Fee
Members: Free
Visitors: £5.00
Date and Time
19:30 -
Location
Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution, 16-18 Queen Square, Bath BA1 2HN
Lecture Description
Plate tectonics is a grand paradigm in Earth Sciences that ties together many disparate observations. In order to conserve the Earth’s surface area, the creation and movement of oceanic plates is necessarily accompanied by their return (subduction) into the underlying mantle (that comprises 80% of the Earth by volume). The initial passage of the plate into the mantle can be observed seismically, but thereafter the fate of plates remains enigmatic. Do they sink and pile up at the bottom of the mantle or simply get mixed back up in convective flow? In order to attempt to resolve this question geochemists have used an increasingly wide range of natural tracers to see if any hint of ‘recycled’ oceanic crust is ever resampled at the surface. This talk will review some of the techniques behind this endeavour and report on its mixed success.
Attending via Zoom
This is a hybrid meeting: you can attend in person or join online via Zoom.
Bath Geological Society Members: Free of charge. Joining instructions and the Zoom link are sent to members by email prior to the lecture.
Visitors & Non-Members: (including members of the Geologists' Association and affiliated societies) Please book via Eventbrite to receive Zoom access (see the Entry Fee details above).
How to join: Click the Zoom link provided in your email or Eventbrite confirmation. You can join using the Zoom desktop or mobile app, or directly via your web browser without installing any software. The virtual waiting room opens approximately 15 minutes before the scheduled start time, and attendees will be admitted before the talk commences.
For any queries about joining online, please contact [email protected].